Gerloff Holds Off Field for URSS Win

FORT MORGAN, Colo. — The track conditions might not have been ideal. But they suited John Gerloff's driving style. That helped Gerloff capture his first United Rebel Sprint Series victory Saturday night at I-76 Speedway in Fort Morgan, Colo. The dry, slick conditions turned the dirt track into more of a finesse oval, and Gerloff used that to his advantage.

“It probably was good for me since it had been so long since I raced,” he said. “ … The pace was really show because it was very, very slick. You had to be a finesse driver. That probably benefitted me.” A total of 22 drivers checked in for the night, and all 22 competed in the A-main. Judd Sheaffer and Blake Bogenhagen started on the front row. But the night belonged to Gerloff — who started inside the third row — and the yellow flag. The caution flag waved 12 times during the night, and series founder Rick Salem has forced to trim the normal 25-lap feature down to just 21 laps for fear of drivers running out of fuel.

Once Gerloff got to the front, he had to wait out a good portion of those cautions. “It was pretty much a one-lane track,” the Thornton, Colo., driver said. “Once I got into the lead, I tried not to screw it up. If you lost the lead, you probably weren't going to get it back. Everything worked out really well for us. The 56-year-old, who estimates he was out of racing since 2004 before this season, said he was glad when the checkered flag waved on the field. “I was just glad it was over. I'm too old to sit in the car that long,” he said with a laugh.

The 22 cars marked the most in the Colorado Region's history and included three drivers from the Kansas Region, Brian Herbert, Keefe Hemel and Zach Blurton.  “It was a good field of cars,” URSS founder Rick Salem said. “It was a good field and a good show.”

Adam Trimble finished second, followed by Herbert in third and Blake Smith in fourth. Bogenhagen finished fifth.

Herbert won the Keizer Aluminum Racing Wheels Hard Charger Award, taking third after starting 15th. He put pressure on Trimble late in the race but never could get around him for the runner-up spot.

Heat races winners were Zach Blurton, Blake Smith, Bob Schaeffer and Jeff Heffner.

Feature results

1. John Gerloff, 2. Adam Trimble, 3. Brian Herbert, 4. Blake Smith, 5. Blake Bogenhagen, 6. Patrick Bourke, 7. Judd Sheaffer, 8. Reed Bernbeck, 9. Mike Parker, 10, Zach Blurton, 11. Mike Anderson, 12. Jeremy Lueck, 13. Jeff Heffner, 14. Dan Brummet, 15. Ian Christie, 16. Sam Wisecup, 17. Keefe Hemel, 18. Tim Perkins, 19. Bob Schaeffer, 20. Don Campbell, 21. Tara Jo Christie, 22. Levi Wisecup.